Your help is needed PLEASE!!! (San Francisco, Fresno: sales, 2009, to rent)

[formykids]

Hello,
I am in desperate need of some info.. any info... My husband wants to relocate my family of 6 to Fresno, Clovis????? I have 4 children and from the east coast and know NOTHING about any of these areas.. Mainly, I am concerned with schools and saftey.. Please anyone with anything good or bad HELP ME I Am Lost... I have to make a farily quick decision... He has a great job opportunity which is rare these days.... I am just not the type of person who can pick up and start over...but I think I have no choice... thank you so much for taking a moment to help me...

[maja]

I don't think Fresno is a great area but Clovis may be better. Check out GreatSchools.com and the City-Data.com city information site for crime, demographics, etc. stats. Good luck. (We're in California hoping to move to the east coast!)

[momojojo]

I was raised in the central San Joaquin Valley and now live in the Fresno area. I'm familiar with both Clovis & Fresno. Like anywhere, there are good areas and bad areas. Fresno is diverse, but its not as bad as everyone likes to make it out to be.

Clovis is a good little town of around 90,000. Great schools, but very competitive. We're centrally located, so it only takes a couple hours to go to the beach, about 3 1/2 to San Francisco and 4-5 hours to L.A. We're close to the mountains for snow skiing, mountain lakes (Bass Lake, Huntington, Shaver)...

You can also check out small towns surrounding Fresno/Clovis. Kingsburg is a great little town about 20 miles away, Visalia, Hanford.

Don't be afraid of Fresno. Just stay north. We have great shopping (Fig Garden Village, Riverpark). Check out Clovis too.

Your coming into a buyers market, so housing shouldn't be a problem. What kind of business is your husband in? What kind of prices are you looking at? What ages are your kids?
What kind of area do you like, small town, larger city? Will you be searching for a job?

Hopefully Fresnofacts will post soon. He's a plethora of local information.
Good luck. Anything else you want to know just holler.

[humboldtrat]

Originally Posted by formykids

Hello,
I am in desperate need of some info.. any info... My husband wants to relocate my family of 6 to Fresno, Clovis????? I have 4 children and from the east coast and know NOTHING about any of these areas.. Mainly, I am concerned with schools and saftey.. Please anyone with anything good or bad HELP ME I Am Lost... I have to make a farily quick decision... He has a great job opportunity which is rare these days.... I am just not the type of person who can pick up and start over...but I think I have no choice... thank you so much for taking a moment to help me...

Don't worry. Clovis and the northern half of Fresno are nice places. The only downside is the summer heat.

[Adriatica]

Zip codes with (generally) good safety and good schools:
Fresno (93720, 93711, 93730)
Clovis (93611, 93619)

There are plenty of nice places in other zip codes, but these are a good jumping off point.

Clovis Unified is a great school district. Parts of north Fresno (including the zips listed above) are in the Clovis District (the Fresno and Clovis districts do not follow city boundaries). Fresno Unified is a good district and many people take advantage of its magnet and charter schools, which are very good.

There are LOTS of things for kids to do in the area. Numerous dance studios, youth sports programs, martial arts, swimming, drama, music, everything. Both city-run programs and private programs are available. Mountains and lakes are nearby (starting from 45 minutes away, depending on where you live) and the coast is 2.5 hours away. Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia National Parks are all withing 1.5 hours.

Clovis is a very family-oriented community, so you might focus your initial search there. Lots of parades, the rodeo, festivals, etc. plus all of Clovis is in the Clovis Unified School District.

There are also a number of excellent private school options in the area, if that's what you're looking for.

Lots of nice parks in the area, from small neighborhood parks to large regional parks (Woodward Park and Roeding Park). The Chaffee Zoo, Storyland, and Playland are all at Roeding Park and are great fun for kids. The Fresno Met Museum downtown has great children's exhibits. There are sporting events to go to at Fresno State and there's AAA baseball (Fresno Grizzlies). The Discovery Center is a hands-on science museum for kids.

[rkb0305]

Looks like you already got some good info from some people. I was born and raised in Fresno. I grew up near Bullard High School and lived near Clovis West as an adult. Whether or not you would like it there probably depends on what you are moving away from (city size, entertainment options, weather...). Does any one in your family have asthma?

[Charles]

School Performance Maps

[FresnoFacts]

There's been a good start from those who know the area well. If you can give us more specific info we can help more. For example ages of your children, where are you coming from (state or city for comparison), other questions or concerns.

The Fresno/Clovis area is not like the California of the movies. It is more of a midwestern feel with a deep connection to farming.

The area is ethnically diverse and will also be more moderate to right of center politically. That seems conservative to many Californians but is close to much of the US.

People for the most part are friendly, particularly in many neighborhoods. In my area, we get together with neighbors for BBQs, 4th of July block parties, etc.

The area is very family based. Lots of things revolve around schools, church, etc.

The area in recent years has passed sales tax increases to support local libraries and the local zoo.

What ages are your kids? Clovis Unified covers the city of Clovis and parts of north and east Fresno. It is very good.

Fresno high schools did well at the California Academic Decathlon this month. 4 schools were in the top 25 out of 60 in the state finals. Two are Fresno Unified (Edison and Bullard) while two are private charter schools (University High and Hallmark High)
http://www.academicdecathlon.org/sco...aryResults.pdf

Weather - You will hear about fog and heat. The area gets about 35 days each winter of dense fog (less then 1/4 mile visibility). Think of it like dealing with a snow storm. In summer there are about 35 days of temps over 100 degrees but the humidity is low (about 20% in the middle of a July afternoon).

Air quality has been an issue but is improving. There is a long way to go but the trend has been a big drop in pollutants. But it is much better air quality than Southern California or some other areas.

Crime in Fresno used to be high in the 1990s but is now at a 50 year low. If you look at this link cities are ranked safest to dangerous. Fresno is ranked #242 out of 385, Clovis ranks 58th safest in the US. But remember Fresno is almost 500,000 people.

Let us know what else you would like to know about.

Originally Posted by momojojo

Hopefully Fresnofacts will post soon. He's a plethora of local information.

Now you're making me blush, I just have a lot of info that passes by me for work and other reasons.

[FresnoFacts]

Oh I also wanted to add the Fresno area has one of the largest free-standing children's hospitals in the country. Children's Hospital Central California is very strongly supported by the community.
Children's Hospital Central California

[formykids]

I can't thank all of you that have responded.. I am a nervous wreck.. Ok Lets see.. My children are 13, 7 and I have 6 month old twins.. I am originally from new york ..yes an east coast girl ..but I am very nice Lol.. I have been living in a small town in PA. for about 7 years. So I have had a chance to go from big town to smaller town... I am ok with that I really do like a small town feel better. I am mainly worried about my kids making new freinds, new schools, .. they are both girls.. so it's a little harder for them .especially the 13 year old.. it's a tough age... I just want to find some nice .. normal people to maybe become friendly with.. I will know no one and have no family there... My husband is going to head up one of the produce, farming, companies. It really is a great opportunity for him and probbably us as well... But I am the kind of person that likes to know people... I am pretty friendly and easy to get along with.. for the most part.. But it's like dropping me in the middle of somewhere, where I know nothing and no one and that seems very scary to me.. I will be looking to rent a house probably for at least the first year.. I have heard clovis schools are better.. Do you KNow about how many children there are per class.. We have very small classes here.. I will be home with the twins for the most part.. Do you have seasons? or is it always hot? And what's with the fog and air quality?? How bad is it? Is clovis A safe place for the kids to play outside? Is is safe to go to the stores like a woman alone.. Sorry for all these questions but some people .. Not u guys have made me feel like I am moving to the worst part of the State ... Growing up in NY I am well aware there are good and bad areas everywhere... Just don't want any drive by shootings and someone told me there are gangs?? See why I am freaking out.. you all are so nice and helpfull ..anymore info.. would be soo great ... oh and what about Medical care for the kids are there good Drs. there..and is there a good hospital?? Ok .. thats all for now thank you all again so much...